What Gauge Strings Does a Gretsch 6120 Guitar Come With?

Written by larry rivers

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The 6120 established Gretsch as a leading electric guitar manufacturer. (Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images)

Established in the early 1880s in New York City by German immigrant Friedrich Gretsch, the Gretsch Musical Instrument Company initially specialised in import banjos and other stringed instruments. With the rise in popularity of the electric guitar, Gretsch developed and released its iconic 6120 "Nashville" hollow body electric guitar, which became instantly popular with country and rock artists alike. Gretsch still produces variants of the original 6120 design.

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Factory String Sets

The 6120 features a hollow body design, which is responsible for much of the guitar's desirable warm tone and large sound. Like a traditional acoustic guitar, heavier strings gauges provide increased string tension and louder acoustic vibrations. Grestch supplies heavy 11 gauge string sets with their 6120 guitars from the factory to take advantage of the guitar's natural resonance and sustain.

Gretsch Electromatic Strings

Grestch has supplied the electric guitar market with their "Electromatic" nickel wound steel strings in the past. These Gretsch strings were factory supplied with 6120 guitars for years, offering the Grestch sound right out of the box. These string sets included .011, .014, .018, .028, .038, and .049 inch strings. One additional .011 and .014 strings were also included in each set.

Vintage 6120 Models

The 6120 model is closely linked with great artists such as Eddie Cochran and Chet Atkins. The most coveted year for vintage 6120 models for many guitar players and collectors are those made in 1959. Gretsch had just unveiled a new trestle bracing system for the guitar's soundboard, or top, allowing the body to provide more sustain and punch than before. This bracing system has been revived in the G6120SSU Brian Setzer Nashville signature artists guitar.